HumaneWatch.org wants the people of Iowa to know that very little of the money they donate to Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) actually helps those dogs and cats they see on television.

The consumer alert video calls the HSUS ads with malnourished pets and celebrity spokespeople "emotionally manipulative" and directs viewers to the HumaneWatch.org website where a recent report exposes the HSUS budget.

Although the direct mail, telemarketing and television ads used by HSUS to collect donations show caring for abandoned and abused cats and dogs as a primary focus, the group's tax returns show just 1 percent of its multi-million dollar budget goes to local hands-on shelters and rescues.

The ad by HumaneWatch.org seeks to educate Iowans with a desire to help local pet shelters. A poll by ORC International determined that 71 percent of Americans mistakenly believe that HSUS is a pet shelter umbrella group, and 68 percent wrongly think that HSUS spends most of its money on pet shelters.

"HSUS uses emotionally manipulative ads to hook Americans who love their pets, yet the animal rights group gives just one penny of every dollar it raises to local pet shelters," said CCF Senior Research Analyst J. Justin Wilson. "HumaneWatch.org wants to ensure that donations go to support the cause donors intend. If they want their contributions to aid cats and dogs in their community they should give directly to local pet shelters instead of inadvertently bankrolling HSUS's aggressive PETA-like agenda."

The HumaneWatch.org ad points out the "D" grade HSUS received from the well-respected charity watchdog American Institute of Philanthropy (CharityWatch) and adds that, while 1 penny of every dollar donated to HSUS assists local pet shelters, up to 48 cents of that dollar is spent on fundraising costs.

HumaneWatch.org, a project of the Center for Consumer Freedom, has previously run ads with the same message in the USA Today and in New York City's Times Square.